Aberdeen safety hub opens as Arco expands training and offshore kit drops

by Featured NewsPorts & MaritimeSafetyTraining

Safety services and site capabilities

Arco has opened a specialist centre in Aberdeen to support oil, gas and renewables sector companies working across onshore and offshore operations.

The£500,000 site is intended to help companies minimise risk and maximise productivity across demanding working environments.

The 13,700 sq ft centre is based near Aberdeen airport.

It offers safety training, face fit testing, respiratory servicing and product decoration services.

The centre also provides offshore kit drops, with orders placed before 3pm delivered the same day.

Each week, up to 100 kit bags are dispatched from the Aberdeen centre to the North Sea and beyond.

Energy and export focus

The launch follows Arco’s November announcement of a 37 per cent rise in pre-exception EBITDA to £11.4 million over the past year.

Alex Richards, Arco’s Energy and Export Director, said: “We’ve been keeping customers in Aberdeen safe for nearly 40 years, and this new centre signifies more than just a move to a new site.

“Our £500,000 centre enables access to Arco’s more than 140 years’ safety experience through best-in-class training, respiratory servicing, face fit testing, and same-day offshore kit drops.

“We supply highly certified PPE selected specifically to combat hazards faced offshore, onshore and across complex industrial environments.

“Our people are energy sector specialists, with deep understanding of industry regulations, working conditions and operational challenges.

“That knowledge allows us to provide informed guidance, the right solutions first time, and a level of service customers can rely on.

“By keeping people at the centre, and offering products dedicated to the energy industry, we’ve built long-standing partnerships that help protect workers, reduce risk and maximise productivity across Aberdeen’s energy community.”

The company said it is supporting workers across the globe from the Aberdeen centre, including Africa and the Middle East.

Dräger reaffirms commitment to Aberdeen operations

by Projects
Dräger (or Draeger) Marine and Offshore, a division of The Dräger Group, has confirmed a new phase of investment in its Aberdeen office.

The latest phase of investment will focus on significantly expanding the company’s rental fleet of offshore safety equipment, which includes its fire and rescue apparatus. The company’s safety products are employed by many operators in the North Sea, and its Aberdeen base is home to the UK’s largest direct to customer rental fleet of Dräger equipment with over 1600 items.

The company has also announced the appointment of David Donaldson to head up its Marine and Offshore UK office, based in Aberdeen. Twenty five staff are based at the Aberdeen office, which in addition to its rental fleet, is also home to an international offshore safety training academy and state of the art service workshop. Dräger is the only safety manufacturer with a base in Aberdeen, and the firm also has premises at Grangemouth.

Donaldson, who brings to the company over 30 years’ experience working in the offshore, oil and gas industries, said: “Dräger has had a presence in Aberdeen for almost ten years, and the company has weathered many challenges through this time. The ongoing investment in Aberdeen reaffirms our commitment to the local business community, as well as our staff, who have been working hard to maintain our customers’ critical safety operations throughout lockdown.”

As well as continuing to service offshore equipment such as rigs throughout lockdown, Dräger staff have also adapted safety training courses to be delivered online to enable its customers to continue operationally-critical work during the pandemic.

The adoption of new technology has resulted in Dräger Marine and Offshore winning a new contract to install the largest wireless gas detection system ever employed by a North Sea operator. Work will commence on the project, which includes the installation of over 120 wireless gas detectors, in September, and will be fully operational by November.

Donaldson concluded: “Despite the great challenges that face the oil and gas industry as a result of Covid-19, there is growing optimism for the future, particularly amongst medium-sized organisations that are large and robust enough to weather the storm, but small and nimble enough to respond to new and emerging opportunities that the current crisis is presenting. We see real opportunity in this area of the market, and look forward to playing our part in supporting future growth here as business starts to resume.”

www.draeger.com/